What Is Fascism?: On the Institutionalization of Ideology (The Collected Works of George L. Mosse) - Softcover

George L. Mosse

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0299358348 ISBN 13: 9780299358341

Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press, 2026

Synopsis

In 1963, nearly two decades after the end of the most destructive war in human history, George L. Mosse assembled a group of interdisciplinary scholars from diverse backgrounds to answer a seemingly simple question: What is fascism? The landmark seminar that followed, held at Stanford University, came to define the intellectual conversation about European fascism throughout the postwar era. Mosse strove to better understand the legacy of fascism by debating its origins—often contentiously—with the sharpest minds of his generation.

In this volume, which collects Mosse’s lectures as well as his peers’ responses, Mosse and his colleagues wrestle with fascism’s origins and impact. The straightforward question that launched the seminar quickly expands to deeper debates. What are the intellectual foundations of right-wing populist political movements? How had this particular movement risen to power so quickly and then left so much devastation in its wake? Were charismatic leaders like Hitler and Mussolini the driving forces, or did the various incarnations of fascism throughout Europe and beyond constitute a broader revolution? What was the relationship of religious and cultural institutions to fascism’s rise and cataclysmic fall?

As the word “fascism” takes on new meaning in the twenty-first century, it is more urgent than ever to revisit the work of scholars who witnessed its birth—and its defeat. In the foreword, Stanley G. Payne situates the lively debate in its historical context, and in the critical introduction, James J. Sheehan shares his own memories of the seminar and reflects on how the experience drove Mosse’s later work.

About this title

About the Authors

George L. Mosse (1918–1999) was a legendary scholar, teacher, and mentor. A refugee from Nazi Germany, in 1955 he joined the Department of History at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, where he was both influential and popular. Mosse was an early leader in the study of modern European cultural and intellectual history, the study of fascism, and the history of sexuality and masculinity. Over his career, he authored more than two dozen books.

Stanley G. Payne is a professor emeritus of history at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. His many books include The Franco Regime: 1936–1975; Fascism: Comparison and Definition; and Spain’s First Democracy: The Second Republic, 1931–1936.

James J. Sheehan is Dickason Professor in the Humanities, Emeritus, at Stanford University. His books include Making a Modern Political Order: The Problem of the Nation State.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0299358348
• ISBN 13: 9780299358341
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 326